Affirming faith experiences and psychological health for caucasian lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals

Abstract

Religious faith plays a central role in the lives of many people. Although studies and anecdotal literature have explored the conflict between sexual and religious identities, no research has investigated the role of faith group affirmation of a lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) identity on the mental health of LGB members. This study compared 2 models of the relations between psychological health and current faith affirmation experiences, internalized homonegativity, and spirituality. Participants were 583 LGB individuals who identified themselves as currently affiliated with a faith group. Results indicated that the fully mediated model was a good fit and offered a more parsimonious explanation than the partially mediated model. Affirming faith experiences were related to psychological health through internalized homonegativity and spirituality. Copyright 2005 by the American Psychological Association.

Publication Title

Journal of Counseling Psychology

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